Eric Poulin

Posts Tagged ‘scripture’

1 Nephi 4:19

“And after I had smitten off his head with his own sword, I took the garments of Laban and put them upon mine own body; yea, even every whit; and I did gird on his armor about my loins.”:

Nephi here is trying too appear as Laban to get the plates. He can now freely walk into Laban’s home with his servants respecting him. We don’t know if Nephi looks anything like Laban, however, its the clothes that demand the respect, not Laban himself. Think about it… its Laban’s wealth that demand respect, not Laban himself. Take away Laban’s wealth and he doesn’t garner the respect that his servants give him. His fine clothes are a symbol of his wealth. Read the rest of this entry »

1 Nephi 4:11

I’ve always found it interesting that, as Nephi was constrained by the Spirit to kill Laban, he used in his reasoning and justification (amongst a few reasons the Lord spoke of) that Laban had taken away Lehi’s family’s property. I’ve often wondered about this. My understanding of future celestial glory is that people would live in a united order, where all things are shared, people are given stewardships of land, but possessions begin to lose their meaning as traditional possessions are held in common to be allotted by Bishops. The early saints experimented with living this order but it was a dismal failure. Clearly the people were not ready for such a jump in understanding and paradigm shift. Read the rest of this entry »

1 Nephi 4:9

“And I beheld his sword, and I drew it forth from the sheath thereof; and the hilt thereof was of pure gold, and the workmanship thereof was exceedingly fine, and I saw that the blade thereof was of the most precious steel.”

We read later in the Book of Mormon that this space was reserved for sacred things and not much was written because of the difficulty of engraving on plates of gold. So, why did Nephi take the time to describe the features of Laban’s sword? Maybe, as Nephi stumbled upon Laban in his drunken state the sword reminded him of Laban’s wealth and power. Read the rest of this entry »

1 Nephi 3:28

“And it came to pass that Laman was angry with me, and also with my father; and also was Lemuel, for he hearkened unto the words of Laman. Wherefore Laman and Lemuel did speak many hard words unto us, their younger brothers, and they did smite us even with a rod.”

As we discussed previously, Laman was lusting after the wealth of his father, his inheritance. Although they’d been taken into the wilderness, the return to Jerusalem surely brought back some of these desires. Handling their wealth and offering to Laban must have been hard for him. Read the rest of this entry »

1 Nephi 3:24-25

“And it came to pass that we went in unto Laban, and desired him that he would give unto us the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass, for which we would give unto him our gold, and our silver, and all our precious things.

And it came to pass that when Laban saw our property, and that it was exceedingly great, he did lust after it, insomuch that he thrust us out, and sent his servants to slay us, that he might obtain our property.”

We can use our physical precious things for righteous purposes. Nephi and family tried to get the brass plates with their precious things. Read the rest of this entry »

1 Nephi 3:19

“And behold, it is wisdom in God that we should obtain these records, that we may preserve unto our children the language of our fathers;”

Knowledge, written communication and education brings commerce, prosperity and wealth. The Lord wants to bless His people with wealth, as can be seen by so many good church members being financially well off. In order to do that we need to have the means to be educated, especially in the commandments of the Lord. This is perhaps one of the less-thought-of reasons they went back to get the brass plates.

1 Nephi 2:20

“And inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper, and shall be led to a land of promise; yea, even a land which I have prepared for you; yea, a land which is choice above all other lands.”

Obedience brings long-term prosperity. While you may profit in the short-term from dishonesty or breaking other commandments, it will never last. The only way to long-term success and prosperity is obedience. This relates to both commandments of the Lord and to the system of finance in which we live. Read the rest of this entry »

1 Nephi 2:13

“they [Laman and Lemuel] were like unto the Jews who were at Jerusalem, who sought to take away the life of my father.”

They complained against Lehi saying he was a visionary man… but I doubt that was the real issue. They were concerned about leaving their precious things and cozy lifestyle. Lehi being visionary was just in the way of their things. Perhaps their lust for money and wealth left them thinking if they destroy their father, the inheritance would be theirs and this silly game of leaving Jerusalem will be over. Read the rest of this entry »

1 Nephi 2:11

“…[Laman and Lemuel] did murmur in many things against their father, because he was a visionary man, and had led them out of the land of Jerusalem, to leave the land of their inheritance, and their gold, and their silver, and their precious things, to perish in the wilderness.”

One of Laman and Lemuel’s weaknesses is documented here. They had their hearts set upon riches. They would have inherited the land and riches of their father. We know that Lehi lived only another 10 years or so, so he was already old and perhaps Laman and Lemuel were looking forward to these inheritances imminently. Read the rest of this entry »

1 Nephi 2:7

“And it came to pass that he built an altar of stones, and made an offering unto the Lord, and gave thanks unto the Lord our God.”

What offering would Lehi have given? Perhaps a thanks offering? (Leviticus 7:12) Whatever the offering, it would have been done without a priest present to consume the offering. We know Lehi is a descendant of Joseph, not a Levite. The offering would have been one of the best of his flock. Read the rest of this entry »